Arknights: Studying medicine can't save Terra

They were held firmly in place by the fear deep in their hearts.

Qi Yan pointed to the open space in front of him and commanded:

"Gather here and kneel down in order of height."

No one resisted; they all obediently followed Qi Yan's orders, kneeling with their hands behind their heads.

The phantom crossbowmen and the refugees from Lungmen were all stunned by what they saw.

They didn't understand that even if Qi Yan was a Calamity-level expert, he shouldn't have such an outrageous aura.

Only the Sarkaz mercenaries knew the truth.

They were helpless against Qi Yan.

The scar that stretched across half of the city of Chernobyl seemed to be deeply etched in their hearts, something they would dream about even in their dreams.

Qi Yan did not immediately attack the Sarkaz mercenaries. In fact, he did not even use Originium and was still in Black Eye state.

Qi Yan turned his head to look at the Reunion member who had been saved by W, a slight smile playing on his lips:

"Eldo, what are you doing here?"

Eldo sat on the ground, still shaken, when Qi Yan suddenly asked him a question, and he shuddered.

"You...you still remember me?" Eldo asked in disbelief.

He was just an ordinary member of the Reunion Movement; all he did was find Qi Yan a uniform.

Later, when the cataclysm ended, he discovered that the white-haired Lupo boy from back then was actually a cataclysmic powerhouse capable of fighting against Talulah.

At that time, he was secretly pleased, thinking that he had met a powerful expert at the level of a calamity.

After that, the Rhodes Island team entered the ruins of Chernobog to carry out a rescue operation, and Qi Yan suppressed Talulah with a single punch.

Eldo's secret joy was completely shattered.

He understood that Qi Yan was a god-like figure, and that he, a nobody, was destined never to cross paths with him again.

Do I look like I have Alzheimer's?

While Eldo was in a daze, Qi Yan slowly walked up to him, reached out and pulled him up, laughing and scolding, "If you can even forget your own friends, then I might as well just buy a bucket of cement, stick my feet in it, and drown myself in the sea."

Eldo's heart raced wildly, and he was so excited that he couldn't utter a complete sentence.

Qi Yan patted him on the shoulder and pointed to the Sarkaz mercenaries:

"These people are yours to deal with. Whether you kill them now or take them back and deal with them slowly later is up to you. This is the price they pay for daring to attack you."

The Sarkaz mercenaries shuddered, their eyes filled with confusion and despair.

Eldo was silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled:

"No need. Just drive them all away. I don't want to see anyone die anymore, not even these Sarkaz."

Looking at Eldo in front of him, Qi Yan understood two things.

One reason is that the people on this land don't understand what "jue le" means.

Another thing is that Eldo has changed so much these days.

At this moment, although Eldo was smiling, he could not hide the bitterness on his face.

His eyes held an inescapable weariness.

"It seems you're not doing well. Indeed, this period has been the darkest time for the Reunion Movement," Qi Yan comforted. "It will all pass. Why don't you tell me about your experiences during this time?"

Eldo's lips trembled, and his voice was very low:

"After the natural disaster, Mondstadt and I... your captain, took advantage of the chaos to attack the Ursus military and police. At first, the situation was very favorable for us."

But later, I was blinded by hatred and became increasingly impulsive, running into a trap set by the military and police. It was Mond who saved me, but he…”

In the end, the guilt in Eldo's eyes almost overwhelmed him.

Qi Yan lowered his eyes slightly, his aura somewhat subdued.

Everyone around, including W, felt a tightness in their chest, and even their breathing unconsciously slowed down.

“Ursus?” Qi Yan nodded. “I will make them pay with their blood for the captain’s death.”

"Uh... Mond is not dead."

Eldo suddenly blurted out a sentence.

Qi Yan's carefully crafted emotions were immediately thrown into disarray by his words.

"You, are you talking so slowly and deliberately?!"

Qi Yan punched Eldo with a mix of amusement and exasperation, and said irritably, "Tell me clearly what happened to the captain."

For some reason, Eldo felt much better after taking the punch.

He seemed to have rediscovered that feeling from before; his eyes were still full of exhaustion and guilt, but his tense nerves had visibly relaxed.

"You saved him. Your battle with Talulah affected many parts of Chernobog, including the encirclement by the military police. In the end, Mondstadt and I managed to escape."

However, he suffered very serious injuries, and the medical capabilities of the Reunion Movement could only barely keep him alive. His captaincy was taken away.

Then, the Core City suddenly activated, and the Reunion Movement became very chaotic. I was worried that Mondstadt would be implicated, so I took him to hide in the Core City's underground warehouse. There were many refugees who had survived the natural disaster there, and I applied for the mission to manage them, hiding Mondstadt inside.

Upon hearing this, Qi Yan suddenly had a strange sense of déjà vu.

He rescued ACE and the others, including a Guardian operator codenamed Guard.

In the original storyline, that guy was supposed to be rescued by ACE and Scout, hide in Chernobog and witness countless sufferings firsthand. In the end, in order to uphold his ideals, he resolutely joined the Reunion Movement and protected the refugees in the core city in his own way.

However, Guard is still perfectly fine on Rhodes Island, clocking in and slacking off at work every day, and following ACE around after get off work to mooch drinks.

Qi Yan suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness.

The suffering seemed to have been rewritten by him, but it did not disappear.

Instead, it seems to find a new host silently, much like a virus.

Qi Yan scratched his head in slight frustration, then picked up where Eldo left off and continued:

"Then just now, in the underground warehouse, you encountered the Rhodes Island team. From Rhodes Island, you learned that Talulah had betrayed the Reunion Movement's ideals, so you risked running out to inform the Patriots."

Eldo's eyes were full of surprise, but then he seemed to realize something:

"Yes, you're also from Rhodes Island, so it's normal for you to know these things."

"Rhodes Island is truly a wonderful organization. That little rabbit was even willing to share various medicines and medical equipment to help the severely injured refugees in the warehouse, and Mondstadt is also within the scope of their aid."

Hearing this, Qi Yan completely put her worries to rest.

Then, his gaze fell upon the Sarkaz mercenaries who were kneeling in a line according to their size.

A sunny and cheerful smile graced Qi Yan's face.

Chapter 105 New Fun Has Arrived

"Which of you is the captain?"

Qi Yan walked up to the Sarkaz mercenaries and looked down at them.

A group of Sarkaz mercenaries cowered like quails, their massive bodies huddled together. Finally, one of them, under the watchful eyes of the others, reluctantly raised his hand.

"As the captain, how can you hide in the middle of the team? Is that acceptable?" Qi Yan cursed.

The Sarkaz captain trembled, overwhelmed with sorrow.

It's not like you're telling us to kneel according to our height; I can't change my height anyway!

But when he met Qi Yan's gaze, he didn't dare to complain or stand up, so he simply knelt down and shuffled over to Qi Yan.

“Mr. Qi Yan, I will follow your instructions. I am very obedient.”

Qi Yan frowned in displeasure as he looked at the bowing and scraping Sarkaz captain before him.

"I still prefer your initial rebellious self; try to revert to that."

The Sarkaz captain was stunned for a moment, then noticed Qi Yan's gaze and quickly regained his composure.

He knelt on the ground, his back straight, his head raised, looking down at Qi Yan with a condescending gaze:

"Mr. Qi Yan, give me your instructions!"

Qi Yan patted his head with satisfaction and said:

"Tell me in detail about the current situation in the core city."

The Sarkaz captain, kneeling on the ground, answered arrogantly:

"Now, with Talulah's tacit approval, the core city is divided into three factions: the slaughter faction represented by the Sarkaz mercenaries, a small, negligible neutral faction, and the lawful faction represented by the Patriot guerrillas."

The direction you're heading in is where the Patriots' guerrillas are located, but I don't recommend you get too close. The Patriots have set up a large number of Originium altars there.

At this point, Captain Sarkaz, seemingly worried that Qi Yan might not understand what an Originium Altar was, added a further explanation:

"The Originium Altar is an ancient Sarkaz ritual that relies on Oripathy infection and the caster's unusual understanding of Originium."

Chaotic energy can seep outwards from the core of Originium, spreading over a wide area and capable of enveloping an entire block. Without the protection of Patriots or special shielding devices, approaching rashly can cause a rapid activation of Oripathy within the body, potentially leading to instant death in severe cases.

"Such a good thing?" Qi Yan's eyes lit up.

Then he noticed the Sarkaz captain's blank look, and quickly coughed lightly, reminding him:

"Ignore what I'm saying, just keep going. Besides the Originium Altar, what other arrangements did the Patriots make?"

Captain Sarkaz immediately raised his chin arrogantly, crossed his arms, and said haughtily:

"There are also a large number of messengers stationed in the streets, so any enemy that gets close will be spotted immediately and driven away or even annihilated by the guerrillas."

"Tell me the location of those messengers."

"Please wait a moment... I mean, please wait for me."

Captain Sarkaz quickly looked down and rummaged in his pocket.

A moment later, he pulled out a map, bit his fingertip, and used the blood to mark each point on it.

Qi Yan took out his terminal, gestured around, and found there was no signal.

He pouted in dissatisfaction, put away the terminal, and rummaged around in his pocket for a while before finally finding a piece of candy.

Peeling off the candy wrapper, Qi Yan popped the candy into his mouth, bit his fingertip, and dripped blood onto the wrapper before crumpling it into a ball again.

After doing all this, his eyes were faintly bloodshot, his face slightly flushed, and he gasped for breath as he said:

"Eat this candy wrapper, then give the map to the Rhodes Island team. After you've done that, you can ask a woman named Kal'tsit for the second potion to remove the curse from my blood."

Remember, you only have ten minutes. Once that time is up, your flesh and blood will be corroded by these few drops of cursed blood.

These words are obviously false.

Qi Yan only handled the candy wrapper briefly, and couldn't guarantee that it wouldn't leak out before the blood lost its activity.

Moreover, once it leaks out, the second medicine will be completely ineffective in treating this situation, and may even increase the activity of Qi Yan's blood.

But Qi Yan didn't care.

The life or death of the Sarkaz captain in front of him was not important to him.

The Sarkaz captain swallowed hard, looked at Qi Yan's bloodshot eyes, and obediently ate the candy wrapper.

He then carefully put away the map and, without daring to delay for a moment, began to run desperately in the direction Qi Yan was pointing.

After Captain Sarkaz left, Qi Yan stuck out his tongue and inhaled sharply.

"Frostnova, are you a devil? This candy is way too spicy!"

It took Qi Yan half a day to recover from the spiciness and turn his attention back to a Sarkaz mercenary.

The Sarkaz mercenary trembled slightly, but still forced himself to stand straight, exuding arrogance as he said:

"Please feel free to ask me any questions you may have..."

Before he could finish speaking, Qi Yan slapped him across the face.

"Who are you trying to fool?" Qi Yan said fiercely.

The Sarkaz mercenary's mask was knocked askew, and his eyes were filled with confusion and bewilderment.

"It wasn't your request to maintain this unruly demeanor," the Sarkaz mercenary said, looking aggrieved.